Ezekiel 36
1 You human, prophesy about the mountains in Israel. Say to them, “You mountains in Israel, listen to what Yahweh says.
“Ndodana yomuntu, phrofetha kuzo izintaba zako-Israyeli uthi: ‘Lina zintaba zako-Israyeli, zwanini ilizwi likaThixo.
2 This is what Yahweh the Lord says: Your enemies [happily] said about you, ‘Aha! The mountains in Israel that have existed for a long time have become ours!’”
Nanku okutshiwo nguThixo Wobukhosi: Isitha satsho ngani sathi, “Awu! Iziqongo zasendulo sezibe yilifa lethu.”’
3 Therefore prophesy about those mountains and say, “This is what Yahweh the Lord declares: [Armies of other nations] attacked you [DOU] from every direction, with the result that your land became abandoned, and people of other nations occupied you, and they spoke maliciously about you and slandered you.
Ngakho-ke phrofetha uthi, ‘Nanku okutshiwo nguThixo Wobukhosi: Ngoba baliphanga njalo balixotsha bevela ezinhlangothini zonke laze laba yilifa lezinye izizwe lento yokunyeywa lokuchothozwa ngabantu,
4 Therefore, you mountains in Israel, listen to this message from me. I, Yahweh the Lord, have something to say to the hills and mountains, to the ravines and valleys, to the deserted ruins and towns whose valuable possessions have been taken and their people ridiculed by the people of other nations around them. This is what I, Yahweh the Lord, declare: I am very angry [DOU] with the people of Edom and other nations; they have forced you [Israeli people] to endure them insulting you.
ngakho-ke, lina zintaba zako-Israyeli, zwanini ilizwi likaThixo Wobukhosi: Nanku okutshiwo nguThixo Wobukhosi kuzo izintaba lamaqaqa, ezindongeni lasezigodini, emanxiweni aphundlekileyo lasemadolobheni atshiyiweyo aphangwayo njalo ahlekwa ngezinye izizwe ezikuhanqileyo,
nanku okutshiwo nguThixo Wobukhosi: Ngokutshiseka kwami okukhulu sengikhulume ngimelana lezinye izizwe njalo lange-Edomi lonke, ngoba ngokuthaba langenzondo ezinhliziyweni zabo benza ilizwe lami elabo ukuze baphange amadlelo alo.’
Ngakho phrofetha ngelizwe lako-Israyeli uthi kuzo izintaba lamaqaqa, indonga lezigodi: Nanku okutshiwo nguThixo Wobukhosi: Ngikhuluma ngolaka lwami olulobukhwele ngoba lithwale isithuko sesizwe.
7 Therefore, this is what I, Yahweh the Lord, say: Lifting up my arm, I solemnly declare that the people of the nations that are around you will also endure being insulted.
Ngakho-ke nanku okutshiwo nguThixo Wobukhosi: Ngifunga izandla ziphakanyiselwe phezulu ukuthi izizwe ezilihanqileyo lazo zizathwala isithuko.
8 But [I say to] you mountains in Israel that huge crops of fruit will grow on your trees for my Israeli people, because they will soon return home [from Babylonia].
Kodwa lina, lina zintaba zako-Israyeli, lizaveza ingatsha lezithelo zabantu bami u-Israyeli, ngoba sebezakuza ekhaya masinyane nje.
9 I (am concerned about/will take care of) you, and I will bless you. I will [enable farmers to] plow the ground and plant seed there.
Ngiyalinqinekela njalo ngizalikhangela ngomusa; lizalinywa lihlanyelwe,
10 I will cause the number of people who live on you mountains and everywhere else in Israel to greatly increase. People will live in the towns and rebuild [houses where there are now only] ruins.
njalo ngizakwandisa inani labantu phezu kwenu, lakuyo yonke indlu ka-Israyeli. Amadolobho kuzahlalwa kuwo futhi lamanxiwa avuselelwe.
11 I will cause the number of people and domestic animals to increase. People will have many children [IDM, DOU]. I will enable people to live there like they did previously, and I will enable them to prosper like they did before. Then you will know that it is I, Yahweh, [who have the power to do what I say that I will do].
Ngizakwandisa inani labantu lelezinyamazana phezu kwenu: njalo kuzazalana kwande. Ngizahlalisa abantu phezu kwenu njengakudala njalo ngizalenza liphumelele kakhulu kulakudala. Lapho-ke lizakwazi ukuthi mina nginguThixo.
12 I will enable my Israeli people to walk through your mountains. They will own you; you will be their permanent possession. Never again will their children die.
Ngizakwenza abantu, abantu bami bako-Israyeli bahambe phezu kwenu. Bazalenza libe ngababo, njalo lizakuba yilifa labo; kaliyikubemuka abantwana babo futhi.
13 This is also what I, Yahweh the Lord, say to you: People say that [only a small amount of food is produced on your mountains, and as a result the people of Israel] die from hunger.
Nanku okutshiwo nguThixo Wobukhosi: Ngoba abantu bathi kini, ‘Lidla abantu lemuke isizwe senu abantwana baso,
14 Therefore, I, Yahweh the Lord, declare that no longer will that happen.
ngakho-ke kaliyikudla abantu futhi loba lenze isizwe senu singabi labantwana, kutsho uThixo Wobukhosi.
15 No longer will the people of other nations ridicule you; no longer will they laugh at you; no longer will [the armies of] other nations conquer you. [That will surely happen because] I, Yahweh, have declared that it will happen.”
Angiyikulenza lizwe izibhinqo zezizwe, njalo kalisayikuthwala izithuko zabantu loba ngenze ukuba isizwe senu siwe, kutsho uThixo Wobukhosi.’”
16 Yahweh gave me another message. He said,
Ilizwi likaThixo lafika kimi njalo lisithi:
17 “You human, when the Israeli people were living in their own land, they (defiled it/caused it to become unacceptable to me) by the things that they did. I considered that their behavior was [disgusting], like [SIM] the rags/cloths that women use during their monthly menstrual periods.
“Ndodana yomuntu, abantu bako-Israyeli besahlala elizweni labo, balingcolisa ngendlela abaziphatha ngayo langezenzo zabo. Ukuziphatha kwabo kwakufana lokungcola kowesifazane kwanyanga zonke emehlweni ami.
18 So I severely punished [MTY] them, because they had murdered [MTY] many people and because they had defiled the land by [worshiping] idols there.
Ngakho ngehlisela ulaka lwami phezu kwabo ngoba babechithe igazi elizweni njalo ngoba babelingcolisile ngezithombe zabo.
19 I caused them to be scattered among many nations [DOU]. I punished [MTY] them like they deserved to be punished because of their very evil behavior [DOU].
Ngabachithela phakathi kwezizwe, njalo bahlakazekela emazweni; ngabahlulela ngokufanele ukuziphatha kwabo kanye lezenzo zabo.
20 And wherever they went among those nations, they caused my reputation [MTY] to be disgraced. What has happened is that the people in those countries said about the Israeli people, ‘They belong to Yahweh, but they were forced to leave the land that he [gave to them].’
Loba ngaphi abaya khona phakathi kwezizwe balingcolisa ibizo lami elingcwele, ngoba kwathiwa ngabo, ‘Laba ngabantu bakaThixo, kodwa basuswa elizweni.’
21 But I was concerned about my reputation, which the people of Israel had disgraced among the nations to which they were forced to go.
Nganqinekela ibizo lami elingcwele, elangcoliswa yindlu ka-Israyeli phakathi kwezizwe abaya kuzo.
22 Therefore, say to the Israeli people, ‘This is what Yahweh the Lord says: You Israeli people, it is not for your sake that I am going to do these things. Instead, it is for the sake of my sacred reputation, which you have disgraced among the nations to which you were forced to go.
Ngakho tshono endlini ka-Israyeli uthi, ‘Nanku okutshiwo nguThixo Wobukhosi: Akusingenxa yakho, wena ndlu ka-Israyeli, ukuthi ngizakwenza izinto lezi, kodwa ngenxa yebizo lami elingcwele, osulingcolisile phakathi kwezizwe lapho oye khona.
23 I will show that my reputation is sacred, a reputation which you have disgraced among the nations to which you were forced to go. And when I show the nations that I am holy, the people of those nations will know that I, Yahweh, [have the power to do what I say that I will do].
Ngizabonakalisa ubungcwele bebizo elikhulu, eselingcolisiwe phakathi kwezizwe, ibizo osulingcolisile phakathi kwazo. Lapho-ke izizwe zizakwazi ukuthi mina nginguThixo, kutsho uThixo Wobukhosi, lapho sengizibonakalisa ngingcwele ngawe phambi kwamehlo azo.
24 What I will do is to bring you back from those nations. I will gather you from all the countries [to which you were forced to go], and bring you back to your own land.
Ngoba ngizakususa ezizweni; ngizakuqoqa emazweni wonke ngikubuyisele elizweni lakho.
25 [It will be as though] [MET] I will sprinkle clean water on you, and then you will be clean. I will cause you to be cleansed from everything that has defiled you, and I will cause you to stop worshiping idols.
Ngizakuchela ngamanzi ahlanzekileyo, uzahlambuluka; ngizakuhlambulula kukho konke ukungcola kwakho kanye lakuzo zonke izithombe zakho.
26 I will give you a completely new way of thinking [IDM]. I will enable you to stop being stubborn [IDM], and I will enable you to obey me from your inner beings [IDM].
Ngizakunika inhliziyo entsha ngifake lomoya omutsha phakathi kwakho; ngizasusa kuwe inhliziyo yakho yelitshe ngikunike inhliziyo yenyama.
27 I will put my Spirit within you and enable you to carefully obey all my laws [DOU].
Njalo ngizafaka uMoya wami phakathi kwakho ngikwenze ulandele izimiso zami njalo unanzelele ukugcina imithetho yami.
28 You will again live in the land that I gave to your ancestors. You will be my people, and I will be your God.
Lizahlala elizweni engalinika okhokho benu; lizakuba ngabantu bami, mina ngizakuba nguNkulunkulu wenu.
29 I will free you from all your disgraceful behavior. I will cause your grain to be plentiful, and I will not send a famine to you again.
Ngizalikhulula kukho konke ukungcola kwenu. Ngizabiza amabele ngiwenze abe manengi njalo angiyikuletha indlala kini.
30 I will cause your fruit trees to produce plenty of fruit and your ground to produce plenty of good crops, with the result that you will no longer be ridiculed by the people of other nations because of your not having enough food.
Ngizakwandisa izithelo zezihlahla kanye lamabele emasimini, ukuze lingabi lehlazo futhi phakathi kwezizwe ngenxa yendlala.
31 When that happens, you will think about your previous evil behavior and wicked deeds, and you will (be very displeased with/hate) yourselves for your sins and the detestable things that you did.
Lapho-ke lizakhumbula izindlela zenu ezimbi kanye lezono zenu ezingalunganga, njalo lizazizonda lina ngokwenu ngenxa yezono kanye lezenzo zenu ezenyanyekayo.
32 But I, Yahweh the Lord, declare that I want you to know that it is not for your sake that I will do those things. You Israeli people ought to be ashamed of your behavior.
Ngifuna ukuba likwazi ukuthi lokhu angikwenzeli lina, kutsho uThixo Wobukhosi. Yangeka ube lenhloni ngenxa yokuziphatha kwakho, wena ndlu ka-Israyeli!
33 This is also what I, Yahweh the Lord, say: At the time that I forgive you for all the sins that you have committed, I will enable you to live in your towns again and to build houses where there are now only ruins.
Nanku okutshiwo nguThixo Wobukhosi: Ngosuku engizakuhlambulula ngalo ezonweni zakho zonke, ngizahlalisa abantu emadolobheni akho, njalo lamanxiwa azavuselelwa.
34 People who walk through your country will see that your land is again cultivated instead of (being desolate/having nothing growing in it).
Ilizwe eliphundlekileyo lizalinywa kulokuthi lihlale liphundlekile emehlweni abo bonke abadabula phakathi kwalo.
35 They will say, “This land that was ruined has become [very fertile/productive] like [SIM] the garden of Eden! The cities that were piles of ruins, empty and destroyed, now have walls around them, and people live in those cities.”
Bazakuthi, “Ilizwe leli elaselenziwe laba lugwadule selibe njengesivande se-Edeni; amadolobho ayesengamanxiwa, ephundlekile njalo echithekile, khathesi asevikelwe ngezinqaba njalo sekuhlala abantu kuwo.”
36 When that happens, the people in the nations that are around you that still exist will know that it is I, Yahweh, who have enabled you to rebuild what was destroyed, and to again plant crops in the fields that had nothing growing in them. I, Yahweh, have said [that it will happen], and I will cause it to happen.
Lapho-ke izizwe ezilihanqileyo eziseleyo zizakwazi ukuthi mina Thixo sengikwakhe kutsha okwakudiliziwe njalo sengikuhlanyele kutsha okwakuphundlekile. Mina Thixo sengikhulumile njalo ngizakwenza lokhu.’
37 This is also what I, Yahweh the Lord, say: Again I will heed what you Israeli people are pleading for me to do for you. I will cause your people to be as numerous as your sheep,
Nanku okutshiwo nguThixo Wobukhosi: Ngizasivuma njalo isicelo sendlu ka-Israyeli ngibenzele lokhu: Ngizakwenza abantu bakibo babebanengi njengezimvu,
38 as numerous as the flocks of sheep that will be needed for offerings in Jerusalem during your regular festivals. The cities that are now ruined will be filled with people, and then you will know that I, Yahweh the Lord, [have the power to do what I say that I will do].’”
babebanengi njengemihlambi yemihlatshelo eJerusalema ngesikhathi semikhosi yalo emisiweyo. Ngokunjalo amadolobho achithekayo azagcwala ngamaxuku abantu. Lapho-ke bazakwazi ukuthi mina nginguThixo.”
